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Dystopian Comparisons

In the Book A Clockwork Orange, the short stories Harrison Burgeron, The Lottery and the movies Gattaca and the Truman Show by Anthony Burgess, Kurt Vonnegut, Shirly Jackson, Andrew Niccol and Peter Wier respectively. These pieces of literature(and cinematography) all have a society that controls and manipulates the individual or Protaganist. The society does this because it wants total control over both the individual and the society as a whole.

A Clockwork Orange is futuristic look at England. Where teenagers rule the streets and neglect the somewhat standing laws of society. The novel's main character, fifteen-year-old Alex, and his three droogs (friends) Pete, Georgie and Dim, take place in all-night acts of random violence and total destruction. Alex is eventually betrayed by his so-called brethren and is caught by the police for killing an innocent lady. He is taken to prison, where he eventually partakes in the "Ludovico Technique," where Alex is "reconditioned" into a model citizen, by being forced to watch movies of things that at one time he had loved including; beating people, raping young women, and partaking in random acts of violence. “After this treatment you can be released back into society as a respectable member of it”. (pg. 132) This demonstrates the society manipulating and controlling the main character because Alex is forced to take part in a program that he does not want to be apart. Also the society completely changes Alex’s personality into one that is more “acceptable” for the society. Another example of society trying to manipulate Alex is when F. Alexander tries to make Alex commit suicide to cover up the experiment’s backfire. This is an example of the society manipulating Alex to not only benefit the society but to also cover up the flaw and mistakes of the society. The society realizes that what has happened to Alex is the undesired out come of the experimental treatment. They used what they learned...

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